Just over half of primary schools reopened to more pupils last week

Just over half of primary schools reopened to more pupils last week, government attendance figures have show.

Fifty-two per cent of education settings that normally accept reception, year 1 and year 6 welcomed back at least one of those year groups on Thursday 4 June.

Just 35 per cent welcomed back more pupils on Monday June 1, the government’s target date for wider reopening.

The data also shows that overall attendance rose to 6.9 per cent of all pupils by Thursday 4 June.

This is up from 2.6 per cent attendance on May 21, the Thursday before half term, when 80 per cent of institutions remained open for vulnerable pupils and the children of key workers.

The number of children attending an education setting who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) was 42,000, up from 23,000 on 21 May and the number of children attending who have a social worker was 47,000, up from 37,000 on 21 May.

Approximately 91% of settings were open in some capacity on 4 June, up from 80% on 21 May.